Also, mounting trader caution before the federal government's upcoming monthly cattle report kept board buying at a minimum. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's monthly cattle-on-feed data is scheduled for release Friday at 3 p.m. EST. The following estimates are percentages of the year-earlier figure:

	Average of Estimates	Range of Estimates
On-feed in Nov	97.9	96.4-98.8
Placed in Oct	111.0	103.9-116.7
Marketed in Oct	107.3	104.3-109.1

Meanwhile, feeder cattle posted modest losses. Lean hogs and pork bellies finished lower.

Live cattle contracts spiked at the start, sparked by follow-through buying and stout wholesale beef demand. December and February gradually made further headway after both trading months punched through major moving average defenses.

However, futures melted from highs as caution replaced bullishness. Market participants weighed pre-report forecasts against sentiments for steady-to-better cash returns this week based on boxed beef's strong performance.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's midday boxed-beef wire showed choice cuts jumped $1.16 per hundredweight and select items soared $2.26.

Source: FXSTREET